44 BULLETIN OF THE 



It seems to me that the true educational want is ignored both by 

 those who advocate a classical and those who advocate a scientific 

 education. What is really wanted is to train the intellectual pow- 

 ers, and the question ought to be, what is the best method of doing 

 this? Perhaps it might be found that both of the conflicting 

 methods could be improved upon. The really distinctive features, 

 which we should desire to see introduced, are two in number : the 

 one the scientific spirit ; the other the scientific discipline. Al- 

 though many details may be classified under each of these heads, 

 yet there is one of pre-eminent importance on which we should 

 insist. 



The one feature of the scientific spirit which outweighs all others 

 in importance is the love of knowledge for its own sake. If by our 

 system of education we can inculcate this sentiment we shall do 

 what is, from a public point of view, worth more than any amount 

 of technical knowledge, because we shall lay the foundation of all 

 knowledge. So long as men study only what they think is going 

 to be useful their knowledge will be partial and insufficient. I 

 think it is to the constant inculcation of this fact by experience, 

 rather than to any reasoning, that is due the continued apprecia- 

 tion of a liberal education. Every business man knows that a 

 business-college training is of very little account in enabling one to 

 fight the battle of life, and that college bred men have a great ad- 

 vantage even in fields where mere education is a secondary matter. 

 We are accustomed to seeing ridicule thrown upon the questions 

 sometimes asked of candidates for the civil service because the 

 questions refer to subjects of which a knowledge is not essential. 

 The reply to all criticisms of this kind is that there is no one 

 quality which more certainly assures a man's usefulness to society 

 than the propensity to acquire useless knowledge. Most of our 

 citizens take a wide interest in public affairs, else our form of gov- 

 ernment would be a failure. But it is desirable that their study of 

 public measures should be more critical and take a wider range. 

 It is especially desirable that the conclusions to which they are led 

 should be unaffected by partisan sympathies. The more strongly 

 the love of mere truth is inculcated in their nature the better this 

 end will be attained. 



The scientific discipline to which I ask mainly to call your atten- 

 tion consists in training the scholar to the scientific use of language. 

 Although whole volumes may be written on the logic of science 



